, 1887-06-08
PRINCE esreaHAzY's STORIES.
They Are About His Remarkable Success
In Shooting Tigers

in Shooting Tigers
Standing in the court at the Palace
hotel, and listening to h music of the
y band, the celebrated Austrian prince,
Louis Esterhazy, as he smoked his cigar
told a reporter Of some remarkable per-
sonal adventures in tiger hunting in the
jungles of India.
at was in 49," said the royal Hum
garian, THAT l set off entirely alone to
enjoy this sport. By saying alone 1 do
not mean that, but l had with me no
Europeans, nobody but native Indian
hunters, who are there called shikaraes.
They are very skilful tiger hunters, and
know where they may soonest be found.
| went far into the interior of central
India, away from even the remotest out
posts of civilization. and right into the
jungles where the fiercest of them were.
1 was connected in IN important way
with h Austrian government, but on
account Of the fascination of the sport,
fraught as it was with unusual danger, l
chose to go entirely unattended by any
but the shikaraes.
"Tiger hunting in India Is best carried
on by batting with cattle, SO l took a
drove of forty head with me. A band Of
some thirty Of the natives were started
three weeks in advance to seek out the
best hunting grounds, and wherever Q
good spot was oupd n Of the shikaraes
dropped out with a certain number of
the cattle to await my coming. In this
way l was enabled to hunt in the widest
sections. The cattle were tied one by one
to trees in the jungle of the margin of a
circle sometimes as much as five miles
across. They were placed there at night.
The tigers came forth at night to seek
their prey, and, finding the cattle, leaped
upon, killed and devoured as much as
they cared to, and went their a
Much of this country is low and wet and
the tigers could easily be tracked in the
soft soil by the expert native Indians.
Following the tracks ZACH successive
morning after hating we would come
upon and shoot them.
I'm this way, in eleven months, with
but a single gun, I myself killed nineteen
tigers. This is the best record made in
India in eighteen years. 1 had a very
big rifle, what is known as an eight bail
gun, carrying twelve drachms of powder.
With this an expert is able to bring down
even the largest tiger easily, and some
times by a SINCE shot. But the sports
man must be as quick as lightning, for mo-
sooner does one of these wild animals see
you, even though he may be surfeited
with food, than he will leap for you with
all the quickness imaginable, and If you
do not make sure work of it you are
gone. The first two or three times, when
undergoing these experiences, it made me
somewhat nervous for fear l would not
make a center shot, but in time 1 got
more confidence. l speak now of hunt
ing tigers on foot, as l was doing. This
is the most dangerous way, but it is most
fascinating. Iseveral times went off into
the jungle entirely alone, and hunting in
this way l had a number of narrow
escapes.
ION one occasion / was tracking a
tiger, and was raising my gun to shoot,
having come upon it suddenly, when l
was startled by the deep growl and rapid
tread of another coming upon me. was
so hard pressed that, after shooting one, |
had to flee for my life, and only Just
escaped by climbing a tree. In the eleven
months l many times slept out alone in a
distant jungle, with only my blanket to
keep of the rain. Isuppose l underwent
many such an experience, SO far as ex-
posure is concerned, as your American
trapper and miner did in earlier and more
dangerous days.
Another way to hunt tigers is to do so
shooting from elephants or camels. When
this is done, a small rifle is generally used.
l hunted principally as much as 200 or
300 miles away from the furthest outpost.
/ had a regular caravan of elephants,
shikaraes, tents, and various equipage,
but, wandering away by myself, l was
forced to rough it and endure hardships
which l hardly anticipated. This was
the case when, for quite o long period, all
my servants got sick with fever. / shot
more n bigger tigers during the rainy
months. In ten days in July l got five
tigers and a panther. A tiger always
comes from a hill and goes back to a hill.
He will not stay long on low ground.
Usually three or four at least of a hunting
party are killed before the season is over.
You will understand. therefore, what good
fortune we had in escaping loss of life.
Il also had quite an interesting expert
ence in hunting the buffalo or bison of
India. This bison is much larger and a
great deal fiercer than the American bison.
He has the same tough, bullet proof fore
head and a great hump on his shoulders,
but does not have the long, thick, faring
>hane. His feet are white as high up as
the knee and shank. You wound one OF
these buffaloes and as o as he sees YOU,
no matter how bad he is hurt, he will
make for you He comes with head
down to gore you, and he means to kill
you. There is no other animal with more
ferocity or that means more danger to
the hunter. Their horns are something
~stupendous. hunted buffalo at Assam,
on the Brahmapootra river, between Bur
mai n Thibet. killed n ferocious COW
there that / had first wounded, and which
in consequence came very near killing
me, whose horns were of the enormous
length of six feet.
The tigers of India, although very
formidable, are not as large rs generally
supposed. They are generally said to
weigh about 1000 pounds each, but l
think few of them reach that. The
average weight l found to be about 900
pounds. San Francisco Examiner.